SOTWStatistics of the World

Data corrections

September 8, 2026 · precision, uncertainty and health-measure definitions

Nine already-published WHO measures now use complete reviewed source captures, covering 41,893 historical readings and 1,570 latest readings. Their country/year coverage is preserved. Vaccine, TB-incidence, UHC and malaria-death central values already matched WHO exactly; the changes restore measurement context and source uncertainty where supplied. Maternal, health-spending and malaria-incidence values now retain the source’s full precision instead of four-decimal storage rounding.

Maternal deaths: these are estimated annual counts, including pregnancy-related or aggravated causes during pregnancy or within 42 days of its end, excluding accidental and incidental causes. They are not a mortality ratio per live births. Fractional estimates and uncertainty endpoints remain numerical. In 283 supported country/year readings, WHO’s rounded display is zero although the numerical estimate is positive. SOTW preserves that distinction and keeps the original display separately. WHO maternal-death definition.

Vaccination coverage: DTP3 and hepatitis B cover three doses; measles covers first-dose MCV1. Target cohorts follow the specific measure and national schedules; survey inputs commonly examine children aged 12–23 months. These are WHO/UNICEF coverage estimates, not immunity percentages or proof of new empirical observations in every reference year. WUENIC can retain a previous estimate when new information is unavailable, including its 2025 non-reporting-country convention. A country-specific carry-forward flag is not inferred from equal adjacent values. All 601 source-reported hepatitis B zeros are preserved; absent numerical intervals remain absent. Measles coverage metadata now correctly ends in 2025. WHO/UNICEF estimation guidance.

TB incidence: this measures estimated new and relapse cases of all forms, including people living with HIV, per 100,000 population per year. It is distinct from notified cases alone and from TB mortality. All 4,852 historical source uncertainty pairs are now retained, including the supplied zero endpoints alongside 46 genuine zero centers. WHO TB-incidence definition.

UHC service coverage: the 0–100 index measures SDG 3.8.1 service coverage through tracer indicators and geometric aggregation. It is not the percentage insured and does not measure financial protection. Annual reference-year values do not establish annual surveys: WHO describes 1–5-year input collection and 2–3-year dissemination. Numerical uncertainty intervals and a proven publication vintage are not supplied by this capture. WHO UHC-index definition.

Malaria incidence: two positive source estimates were incorrectly stored as zero: China 2016 (0.000002) and Morocco 2004 (0.000033), measured in cases per 1,000 population at risk per year. Their numerical centers and source endpoints are restored; WHO’s rounded display remains available separately. The source definition identifies 95% uncertainty intervals for this measure. The missing Mauritius 2021 interval remains absent. Genuine zeros remain zero.

Malaria deaths and health spending: malaria deaths are estimated counts, with source intervals retained where available. Missing intervals are not replaced by zero endpoints. Current health expenditure per capita is in nominal current US dollars per person, not purchasing-power-adjusted or constant dollars. WHO’s reference-year labels do not establish that every underlying national account uses a calendar year; country-specific fiscal and accounting notes require consultation of the source.

Exact source records, missing values, uncertainty and interpretation notes remain available through the data and retained captures. Confidence levels are stated only where documented for that specific source.

Review estimated maternal counts

September 8, 2026 · infant, under-five and neonatal mortality

Three WHO measures now use complete reviewed source captures: mortality before the first birthday (MDG_0000000001), mortality before age five (MDG_0000000007), and mortality in the first 28 completed days (WHOSIS_000003). These are modelled mortality probabilities or rates per 1,000 live births, for both sexes. They are not raw death counts or percentages; the under-five series covers all wealth groups.

SOTW publishes 12,962 infant, 13,032 under-five and 10,269 neonatal readings across 196 supported countries and areas. All three have latest reference year 2024. Historical start years vary by country; the earliest infant and under-five readings are from 1931 and neonatal readings from 1951. Annual reference windows describe the model estimates, not fieldwork dates or publication vintages.

All source estimates and uncertainty endpoints retain their original numerical precision alongside the publisher’s rounded display. The captures preserve 1,262 source notes, including differences from official national statistics, territorial scope in Cyprus, and unavailable empirical Ukrainian data. These notes travel with their readings in tables and exports. No capture-specific confidence level is inferred.

The complete WHO responses also contain Anguilla, Montserrat, Cook Islands and Niue. Those 670 readings remain in the retained source responses but are outside SOTW’s current country selection. They are not mapped to another country. Other supported areas with no source reading remain explicitly unreported.

Review under-five estimates and source notes

September 7, 2026 · withdrawal of the FX.USD annual indicator

FX.USD stored daily exchange-rate quotes under the year of ingestion. Those figures were neither annual averages nor documented year-end rates, and the effective quote date was not retained. Its 2026 country mapping also assigned obsolete Bulgarian lev and Croatian kuna quotes to Bulgaria and Croatia after they had adopted the euro. The indicator has been withdrawn from numerical comparisons, APIs and exports. Earlier exports should not be used as annual exchange rates or as those countries’ current-currency rates.

The original values are preserved privately for audit. The provider’s Open Access documentation describes daily updates, requires attribution and prohibits redistribution of its rate data. SOTW has stopped this import. ECB records confirm the euro changeovers for Bulgaria and Croatia.

Choose the measure needed for your research: World Bank official exchange rates are annual period averages in local currency per US dollar. The ECB reference-rate section contains dated reference quotes and derived cross-rates for its covered currencies. These have different periods and coverage; neither is substituted into FX.USD.

September 7, 2026 · WHO life expectancy and healthy life expectancy

Three measures now use complete reviewed WHO source captures: life expectancy at birth (WHOSIS_000001), remaining life expectancy at age 60 (WHOSIS_000015), and healthy life expectancy at birth (WHOSIS_000002). Age-60 expectancy measures additional remaining years, not expected age at death. The legacy age-60 and healthy-life aliases pointed to different upstream measures; those mappings are corrected.

Each capture contains 4,070 annual reference readings for both sexes across 185 countries, 2000–2021. Nine uncertainty intervals are genuinely absent: Antigua and Barbuda in 2019 and 2021, and Iceland in 2021, in each series. Missing intervals remain absent. The source’s numerical precision is retained separately from its rounded display; an interval confidence level is not established. Capture dates do not establish a publisher release vintage, and the HALE edition should not be mixed with earlier editions.

Review remaining life expectancy at age 60

Correct measurement names and units are essential to interpreting data. This record explains corrections to catalog labels, including cases where a label described a different statistic from the series identified by its code. If you used an earlier label, review the publisher definition and the code in your saved file.

September 7, 2026 · HIV estimates and thresholds

WHO.HIV_PREVALENCE measures estimated people living with HIV, not a prevalence percentage. Its importer previously discarded comparison signs, so a source value such as “<500” became a numeric point of 500. The estimate and both uncertainty endpoints now retain their own operators. Upper bounds are displayed with “<”, exported with explicit number/operator fields, and excluded from ordinary point arithmetic.

The reviewed September 7 source capture has 3,710 observations across 145 countries, including 295 censored central estimates. It omits 276 keys present in the previous stored data: 25 years each for BHR, CIV, GTM, HRV, IRQ, JOR, MKD, SLB, SVK, TUV and VUT, plus India 2024. Those older keys are retained in the audit backup and are not substituted into the current capture. This identifies a coverage difference; its publication or withdrawal cause has not been established.

Replace earlier exports that treated thresholds as points. New captures remain accessible by their hashes after refreshes. The retrieval timestamp does not establish an official publisher release vintage.

Review the corrected threshold examples

September 7, 2026 · WHO source corrections

Five WHO series used the wrong upstream measures. Their current and historical readings are replaced from the correct source codes listed below. Earlier downloads of these series should be replaced. The old stored readings and the exact replacement source responses are retained for audit; they are not presented as valid historical values of the corrected measure.

Physicians (total)

WHO.PHYSICIANS · HWF_0001 → HWF_0002

The total-physicians series previously imported a density per 10,000 people (HWF_0001). Its readings are replaced from the medical-doctor count series HWF_0002.

WHO source definitionOpen corrected comparison

Nursing and Midwifery Personnel (total)

WHO.NURSES · HWF_0006 → HWF_0007

The nursing and midwifery count previously imported a density per 10,000 people (HWF_0006). Its readings are replaced from the personnel count series HWF_0007.

WHO source definitionOpen corrected comparison

Dentists (total)

WHO.DENTISTS · HWF_0008 → HWF_0011

The dentists series previously imported nursing personnel counts (HWF_0008). Its readings are replaced from dentist counts HWF_0011.

WHO source definitionOpen corrected comparison

Pharmacists (total)

WHO.PHARMACISTS · HWF_0009 → HWF_0015

The pharmacists series previously imported midwifery personnel counts (HWF_0009). Its readings are replaced from pharmacist counts HWF_0015.

WHO source definitionOpen corrected comparison

Road Traffic Death Rate

WHO.ROAD_DEATHS · RS_196 → RS_198

The road-traffic death rate previously imported death counts (RS_196). Its readings are replaced from WHO's estimated rate per 100,000 people (RS_198). The reviewed response covers 2021; old count-based history is withdrawn.

WHO source definitionOpen corrected comparison

Other WHO measures remain under source review, including age and population scope, survey dimensions and values reported as thresholds. The five corrections above do not validate the rest of the WHO catalog.

WHO reuse notices were also corrected. SOTW previously assigned a publications license to all WHO data. The road-rate dataset’s official page identifies CC BY 4.0 with WHO dataset terms. For other WHO measures, consult the original dataset notice and WHO data terms; a notice on a related density measure does not establish the terms for a personnel-count series.

September 7, 2026 · population scope and survey data

Seven more WHO series now use reviewed source codes and population selections. Original source responses are retained, including their displayed rounding and any missing uncertainty intervals. Downloads keep the publisher’s numerical precision. Survey reference years do not establish identical fieldwork windows across countries.

TB Mortality, Excluding HIV (per 100K)

WHO.TB_MORTALITY

The reviewed WHO mortality series excludes HIV-associated TB deaths; its rate uses the total population denominator.

Publisher metadataOpen reviewed comparison

Diabetes Prevalence, Age 18+ (age-standardized, %)

WHO.DIABETES

The reviewed WHO series is age-standardized for adults aged 18 and over and uses the current diabetes-prevalence definition.

Publisher metadataOpen reviewed comparison

Air Pollution Mortality (household + ambient, age-standardized)

WHO.AIR_DEATHS

The reviewed WHO rate combines household and ambient air pollution and is age-standardized, with total cause and both sexes selected.

Publisher metadataOpen reviewed comparison

Child Wasting, Under 5 (survey, %)

WHO.CHILD_WASTING

These are survey-based country estimates for children under five, both sexes. They are not interpolated annual observations or subgroup estimates.

Publisher metadataOpen reviewed comparison

Child Underweight, Under 5 (survey, %)

WHO.CHILD_UNDERWEIGHT

These are survey-based country estimates for children under five, both sexes. Missing uncertainty intervals remain absent.

Publisher metadataOpen reviewed comparison

September 7, 2026 · measurement context

The figures were not rescaled for these label corrections. For example, the CO₂ total series was already stored in megatonnes; its kilotonnes label was wrong. The poverty readings already reflect the publisher’s newer thresholds and 2021 PPP basis. Existing archived source files retain their original bytes. Former indicator-page links continue to resolve to their original series codes.

World Bank stock-market, financial-inclusion and social-protection series also had incorrect or missing provider labels. Publisher metadata now supplies their source identity and measurement context. A metadata retrieval date is distinct from an observation’s release vintage.

Country API responses previously labeled PPP values as US dollars and omitted constant-price qualifiers. API responses and comparison exports now use reviewed measurement units where available. Unknown units remain explicitly unidentified.

GNI per Capita, PPP (Current Intl $)

NY.GNP.PCAP.PP.CD

Previously: GNI per Capita, PPP (USD)

PPP uses current international dollars, not market-rate US dollars.

Publisher definition: GNI per capita, PPP (current international $)

Open corrected comparison

GDP per Employed Person (Constant 2021 PPP $)

SL.GDP.PCAP.EM.KD

Previously: GDP per Person Employed (USD)

Identify constant-price PPP and the employed-person denominator.

Publisher definition: GDP per person employed (constant 2021 PPP $)

Open corrected comparison

CO₂ Emissions, Excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e)

EN.GHG.CO2.MT.CE.AR5

Previously: CO₂ Emissions (total kilotonnes)

The stored totals are megatonnes, not kilotonnes; no value conversion is applied.

Publisher definition: Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e)

Open corrected comparison

CO₂ Emissions per Capita, Excluding LULUCF (t CO2e)

EN.GHG.CO2.PC.CE.AR5

Previously: CO₂ Emissions (tonnes per capita)

Identify the current source coverage and CO2-equivalent measure.

Publisher definition: Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions excluding LULUCF per capita (t CO2e/capita)

Open corrected comparison

Poverty at $3.00/day (2021 PPP, %)

SI.POV.DDAY

Previously: Poverty at $2.15/day (%)

The current series uses the $3.00 threshold at 2021 PPP.

Publisher definition: Poverty headcount ratio at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (% of population)

Open corrected comparison

Poverty at $4.20/day (2021 PPP, %)

SI.POV.LMIC

Previously: Poverty at $3.65/day (%)

The current series uses the $4.20 threshold at 2021 PPP.

Publisher definition: Poverty headcount ratio at $4.20 a day (2021 PPP) (% of population)

Open corrected comparison

Poverty at $8.30/day (2021 PPP, %)

SI.POV.UMIC

Previously: Poverty at $6.85/day (%)

The current series uses the $8.30 threshold at 2021 PPP.

Publisher definition: Poverty headcount ratio at $8.30 a day (2021 PPP) (% of population)

Open corrected comparison

Poverty Gap at $3.00/day (2021 PPP, %)

SI.POV.GAPS

Previously: Poverty Gap at $2.15/day (%)

The current poverty-gap series uses $3.00 at 2021 PPP.

Publisher definition: Poverty gap at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (%)

Open corrected comparison

Survey Mean Income or Consumption (2021 PPP $/person/day)

SI.SPR.PCAP

Previously: Survey Mean Consumption (2017 PPP $ per day)

Identify both income/consumption and the 2021 PPP price base.

Publisher definition: Survey mean consumption or income per capita, total population (2021 PPP $ per day)

Open corrected comparison

Growth in Survey Mean Income or Consumption, Total Population (%)

SI.SPR.PCAP.ZG

Previously: Shared Prosperity Premium (%)

This is population-wide annualized growth, not the shared-prosperity premium.

Publisher definition: Annualized average growth rate in per capita real survey mean consumption or income, total population (%)

Open corrected comparison

Labor Force Participation, Age 15+ (National Estimate, %)

SL.TLF.CACT.NE.ZS

Previously: Self-Employed (%)

This is labor-force participation, not self-employment. The self-employment article now uses the existing SL.EMP.SELF.ZS series.

Publisher definition: Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) (national estimate)

Open corrected comparison

Primary Education Spending (% of Education Budget)

SE.XPD.PRIM.ZS

Previously: Expenditure per Student, Primary (% of GDP/cap)

The denominator is government education expenditure, not GDP per capita.

Publisher definition: Expenditure on primary education (% of government expenditure on education)

Open corrected comparison

Secondary Education Spending (% of Education Budget)

SE.XPD.SECO.ZS

Previously: Education Spending, Secondary (% of govt)

The denominator is the education budget, not all government spending.

Publisher definition: Expenditure on secondary education (% of government expenditure on education)

Open corrected comparison

Tertiary Education Spending (% of Education Budget)

SE.XPD.TERT.ZS

Previously: Education Spending, Tertiary (% of govt)

The denominator is the education budget, not all government spending.

Publisher definition: Expenditure on tertiary education (% of government expenditure on education)

Open corrected comparison

Gross Intake to First Primary Grade, Female (%)

SE.PRM.GINT.FE.ZS

Previously: Girls Out-of-School Rate (%)

This is entry into primary school, not the out-of-school rate.

Publisher definition: Gross intake ratio in first grade of primary education, female (% of relevant age group)

Open corrected comparison

Gross Intake to First Primary Grade, Total (%)

SE.PRM.GINT.ZS

Previously: Gender Parity Index, Primary

This is a percentage intake ratio, not gender parity.

Publisher definition: Gross intake ratio in first grade of primary education, total (% of relevant age group)

Open corrected comparison

Persistence to Last Primary Grade (% of Cohort)

SE.PRM.PRSL.ZS

Previously: Pupil-Teacher Ratio (Primary)

This is cohort persistence, not a pupil-teacher ratio.

Publisher definition: Persistence to last grade of primary, total (% of cohort)

Open corrected comparison

Time to Obtain an Operating License (days)

IC.FRM.DURS

Previously: Average Firm Age (years)

This is licensing time in days, not firm age in years.

Publisher definition: Time required to obtain an operating license (days)

Open corrected comparison

Firms Competing with Unregistered Firms (%)

IC.FRM.CMPU.ZS

Previously: Firms Using Computers (%)

This measures competition with informal firms, not computer use.

Publisher definition: Firms competing against unregistered firms (% of firms)

Open corrected comparison

Firms with Female Participation in Ownership (%)

IC.FRM.FEMO.ZS

Previously: Firms with Female Top Manager (%)

Ownership and top-management indicator labels were swapped.

Publisher definition: Firms with female participation in ownership (% of firms)

Open corrected comparison

Firms with a Female Top Manager (%)

IC.FRM.FEMM.ZS

Previously: Firms with Female Participation in Ownership (%)

Top-management and ownership indicator labels were swapped.

Publisher definition: Firms with female top manager (% of firms)

Open corrected comparison

Under-5 Mortality (per 1,000 live births)

SH.DYN.MORT

Previously: Infant Mortality (per 1,000 live births)

Deaths before age five are not the infant (under-one) mortality measure.

Publisher definition: Mortality rate, under-5 (per 1,000 live births)

Open corrected comparison

Current Tobacco Use, Male Adults (%)

SH.PRV.SMOK.MA

Previously: Smoking Prevalence, Males (%)

The source measures tobacco use, not only smoking.

Publisher definition: Prevalence of current tobacco use, males (% of male adults)

Open corrected comparison

Current Tobacco Use, Female Adults (%)

SH.PRV.SMOK.FE

Previously: Smoking Prevalence, Females (%)

The source measures tobacco use, not only smoking.

Publisher definition: Prevalence of current tobacco use, females (% of female adults)

Open corrected comparison

Terrestrial and Marine Protected Areas (%)

ER.PTD.TOTL.ZS

Previously: Terrestrial Protected Areas (%)

The source includes marine as well as terrestrial areas.

Publisher definition: Terrestrial and marine protected areas (% of total territorial area)

Open corrected comparison

Stocks Traded, Total Value (% of GDP)

CM.MKT.TRAD.GD.ZS

Previously: Stock Market Turnover (% of GDP)

The source is traded value relative to GDP, not the market turnover ratio.

Publisher definition: Stocks traded, total value (% of GDP)

Open corrected comparison

Government Revenue Excluding Grants (% of GDP)

GC.REV.XGRT.GD.ZS

Previously: Government Revenue (% of GDP)

Grants are excluded from this revenue measure.

Publisher definition: Revenue, excluding grants (% of GDP)

Open corrected comparison

Central Government Debt (% of GDP)

GC.DOD.TOTL.GD.ZS

Previously: Government Debt (% of GDP)

The source covers central government, not the entire general-government sector.

Publisher definition: Central government debt, total (% of GDP)

Open corrected comparison

Rail Passengers Carried (million passenger-km)

IS.RRS.PASG.KM

Previously: Railways, Passengers (million km)

Identify passenger-distance, not distance alone.

Publisher definition: Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km)

Open corrected comparison

Government Expense (% of GDP)

GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS

Previously: Government Expenditure (% of GDP)

The publisher measures expense, a transaction that decreases net worth; the broader expenditure label was imprecise.

Publisher definition: Expense (% of GDP)

Open corrected comparison

Communicable, Maternal, Prenatal & Nutrition Causes (% of Deaths)

SH.DTH.COMM.ZS

Previously: Cause of Death, Communicable (%)

The source includes maternal, prenatal and nutrition conditions as well as communicable diseases.

Publisher definition: Cause of death, by communicable diseases and maternal, prenatal and nutrition conditions (% of total)

Open corrected comparison

Financial Institution or Mobile-Money Account Ownership (Age 15+, %)

FX.OWN.TOTL.ZS

Previously: Account Ownership at Financial Institution (%)

The source includes mobile-money accounts, not only accounts at financial institutions.

Publisher definition: Account ownership at a financial institution or with a mobile-money-service provider (% of population ages 15+)

Open corrected comparison

This records the issues corrected in this review, not a claim that every dataset or page has been independently validated. Research snapshots preserve selected source captures for reproducible citations. Report a suspected error through the contact page with its indicator code, country, year and source.